Four and a half years ago, my wife and I signed a lease with Jeffrey Nissan for a 1992 Nissan Xterra. The vehicle was to be used by our daughter who was attending college in Washington, D.C. And, as such, would be logging very significant miles on the vehicle.
In negotiating the lease our objectives were simple: obtain the lowest possible monthly lease payment and AVOID any/all mileage charges for Excessive Wear and Use. We were successful in doing so - our lease payments were reasonable and on the final contract in the Excessive Wear and Use clause, "N/A" was in the field specifying the amount to be charged per mile for any miles over 12,000 per year.
Imagine our shock and surprise 4 1/2 years later when after having returned the Nissan Xterra we were presented a lease termination bill from Nissan Motor Acceptance Corporation (NMAC) with a charge of $ 5,480.57 for $. 15/mile for each mile in excess of 12,000 per year under the Excessive Wear and Use clause!!! After numerous exchanges of letters with NMAC, we were provided a copy of the "original" contract NMAC had on file for our lease. Unfortunately that "original" had some major differences compared to our copy of the original contract:
1) The Excessive Wear and Use clause had been changed to replace "N/A" with $. 15 per mile very obviously typed in AFTER we had signed the contract; they actually left the original computer-generated "N/A" in the field! The fact this entry was made after the contract was done is easily seen given that a totally different font was used and the text was totally out of alignment with the computer-generated original we had signed.
2) My wife's initials had been forged near the change (no handwriting expert needed - the difference between the forged initials and my wife's actual writing of her initials is apparent to the casual observer).
3) Though I was the co-lessee with my wife and also signed the original, the person doing the forgery didn't even bother to add my initials to the change.
When NMAC was provided our copy of the true "original" contract and other points of supporting proof, they said they would still be using the contract as provided by the dealer. NMAC directed us to the dealer if we had any further issue with the contract. We sent a personal letter to Mr. Jeffrey Tamaroff, President and Owner of Jeffrey Nissan / Jeffrey Automotive Group and provided a full coy of the documents and proof supporting our claim. We asked Mr. Tamaroff to please contact us; when he didn't, I called and left a message with his secretary. The call was returned by Mr. Tamaroff's attorney, Irving Tukel, a specialist in CRIMINAL DEFENSE! Mr. Tukel said they would be using the contract with the forgery.
0 comments